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It was only towards the end of the 18th century that European merchants and colonists began to refer to the followers of Indian religions collectively as Hindus. The term Hinduism, then spelled Hindooism, was introduced into the English language in the 18th-century to denote the religious, philosophical, and cultural traditions native to India.^[39]

Hinduism has been variously defined as a religion, a religious tradition, a set of religious beliefs, and “a way of life”.^{[44][note 1]}  From a Western lexical standpoint, Hinduism like other faiths is appropriately referred to as a religion. In India the term dharma is preferred, which is broader than the western term religion.

Hinduism is a traditional way of life.^[60] Many practitioners refer to the “orthodox” form of Hinduism as Sanātana Dharma, “the eternal law” or the “eternal way”.^[61][62] The Sanskrit word dharma has a much broader meaning than religion and is not its equivalent. All aspects of a Hindu life, namely acquiring wealth (artha), fulfillment of desires (kama), and attaining liberation (moksha) are part of dharma which encapsulates the “right way of living” and eternal harmonious principles in their fulfillment.^[63][64]

Sources of authority and eternal truths in Hindu texts play an important role, but there is also a strong Hindu tradition of questioning authority in order to deepen the understanding of these truths and to further develop the tradition.^[15]

Hinduism prescribes the eternal duties, such as honesty, refraining from injuring living beings (ahimsa), patience, forbearance, self-restraint, and compassion, among others.^{[web 1][20]}

Major scriptures include the Vedas and Upanishads, the Bhagavad Gita, and the Agamas.^[13][14]

Prominent themes in Hindu beliefs include the four Puruṣārthas, the proper goals or aims of human life, namely Dharma (ethics/duties), Artha (prosperity/work), Kama (desires/passions) and Moksha (liberation/freedom/salvation);^[16][17]

The four largest denominations of Hinduism are the Vaishnavism, Shaivism, Shaktism and Smartism.^[21]

These four are only the largest of many denominations.

The Arabic term al-Hind referred to the people who live across the River Indus.^[36] This Arabic term was itself taken from the pre-Islamic Persian term Hindū, which refers to all Indians. By the 13th century, Hindustan emerged as a popular alternative name of India, meaning the “land of Hindus”.^{[37][note 9]}

Hindu texts are classified into Śruti (“heard”) and Smṛti (“remembered”). These texts discuss theology, philosophy, mythology, Vedic yajna, Yoga, agamic rituals, and temple building, among other topics.^[12]

These are classifications and not names of Hindu texts.

The word Hindu is derived from the Indo-Aryan^[25]/Sanskrit^[26] root Sindhu, the name for the Indus River in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent (modern day Pakistan and Northern India).^{[26][note 7]}

“The actual term Hindu first occurs as a Persian geographical term for the people who lived beyond the river Indus (Sanskrit: Sindhu)”,^[26] more specifically in the 6th-century BCE inscription of Darius I (550–486 BCE).^[27] The term Hindu in these ancient records is a geographical term and did not refer to a religion.^[26]

Hinduism has been called the oldest religion in the world,^{[note 2]} and some practitioners and scholars refer to Hinduism as Sanātana Dharma, “the eternal tradition”, or the “eternal way”, beyond human history.^[4][5]

Sanātana Dharma refers to the “eternal” duties all Hindus have to follow, regardless of class, caste, or sect, such as honesty, refraining from injuring living beings, purity, goodwill, mercy, patience, forbearance, self-restraint, generosity, and asceticism. This is contrasted with svadharma, one’s “own duty”, the duties to be followed by members of a specific varna and jāti.^{[web 1]} Sanātana Dharma also refers to the idea that its origins lie beyond human history, and its truths have been divinely revealed (Shruti) and passed down through the ages to the present day in the most ancient of the world’s scriptures, the Veda. (Knott 1998, p. 5)

According to the Encyclopædia Britannica,

The term has also more recently been used by Hindu leaders, reformers, and nationalists to refer to Hinduism as a unified world religion. Sanatana dharma has thus become a synonym for the “eternal” truth and teachings of Hinduism, the latter conceived of as not only transcendent of history and unchanging but also as indivisible and ultimately nonsectarian.^{[web 1]}

The four largest denominations of Hinduism are the Vaishnavism, Shaivism, Shaktism and Smartism.^[21]

Hinduism is the world’s third largest religion; its followers, known as Hindus, number about 1.15 billion, or 15–16% of the global population.^{[web 2][22]}

Hindus can choose to be polytheistic, pantheistic, monotheistic, monistic, agnostic, atheistic or humanist.^[40][41][42] Because of the wide range of traditions and ideas covered by the term Hinduism, arriving at a comprehensive definition is difficult.^[26] The religion “defies our desire to define and categorize it”.^[43] Hinduism has been variously defined as a religion, a religious tradition, a set of religious beliefs, and “a way of life”.^{[44][note 1]}

Prominent themes in Hindu beliefs include the four Puruṣārthas, the proper goals or aims of human life, namely Dharma (ethics/duties), Artha (prosperity/work), Kama (desires/passions) and Moksha (liberation/freedom/salvation);^[16][17] karma (action, intent and consequences), Saṃsāra (cycle of rebirth), and the various Yogas (paths or practices to attain moksha).^[14]

Scholars regard Hinduism as a fusion^{[note 3]} or synthesis^{[6][note 4]} of various Indian cultures and traditions,^{[7][note 5]} with diverse roots^{[8][note 6]} and no founder.^[9].

The “Hindu synthesis” started to develop between 500 BCE and 300 CE,^[10] following the Vedic period (1500 BCE to 500 BCE).^[10][11]

Hinduism includes a diversity of ideas on spirituality and traditions, but has no ecclesiastical order, no unquestionable religious authorities, no governing body, no prophet(s) nor any binding holy book

Scholars regard Hinduism as a fusion^{[note 3]} or synthesis^{[6][note 4]} of various Indian cultures and traditions,^{[7][note 5]} with diverse roots^{[8][note 6]} and no founder.^[9]

Hindu practices include rituals such as puja (worship) and recitations, meditation, family-oriented rites of passage, annual festivals, and occasional pilgrimages. Some Hindus leave their social world and material possessions, then engage in lifelong Sannyasa(monastic practices) to achieve Moksha.^[19]